Lost: a Ruki's Story
by WingedDW
Summary: A Ruki named Jade, in the pound for fifteen years, gets adopted by a Beatles loving young man called Silas. All goes well, but Jade begins to have...feelings for her new caretaker. Will he return her affections? Rated T for mild self mutilation themes.
1. Where Are We Going, Mommy?

**Lost: A Ruki's Story**

"Where are we going, Mommy?" a small, Mutant Ruki asked her owner.

"To the rainbow fountain, Jade. Maybe the Water Faerie can make you green again." the young woman answered stiffly. They were not, in fact, going to the Fountain; Laura was taking Jade to the pound. Ever since the lab ray accident two months ago, she has not been able to bring her darling Jade into public anymore without being ridiculed. The stress was becoming too much.

"We're here…" Laura whispered a few minutes later.

"Why are we at the—" Jade was cut off by a wheezy, crackling voice.

"Can I help you?" An elderly, white haired Techo stepped out of the double doors leading inside. "My name is Dr. Death."

"Do you have any room for my Ruki here?" asked Laura, determinedly not meeting Jade's eyes.

"Room…?" Once again Jade was cut off by the Techo.

"Of course we have room" he said, leering down at the confused Neopet. "And what is your name?"

"J-jade…" she mumbled, looking at the ground. _Did I do something bad? Why is mommy leaving me here?_

"Well, Jade, come with me and I'll show you to your cell…" Dr. Death took her by the wrist and practically dragged Jade with him. The Ruki struggled to get free and called

to Laura for help. But, when she looked up, she saw that Laura had already gone.

Inside, the Techo forcibly led Jade through many dark hallways, each lined with metal doors. These doors had glass windows in them, and the occupants looked out at the pair. Jade could just barely hear some of them calling out for help…

"Here, cell E345." He took a large bronze key out of his coat pocket and unlocked a door. He pushed Jade inside and shut the door almost completely.

"These two will explain how things work around here." He said through the crack that was still open. Then he slammed it shut, leaving Jade alone. Or so she thought.

"Hello, there!" called a pleasant sounding voice behind her. Jade squealed in shock and turned around. Right in front of her was a yellow Kacheek, smiling amiably. "Are you our new roomie?" Judging from his voice, he was only a few years older than Jade, maybe five or six. She nodded hesitantly. His smile brightened. "Great! My name's Conan! Lyle is cleaning up the mess hall; he should be back soon. He also lives in here.

Jade nodded, still upset but slightly less nervous. She looked around the small room. In the far right corner there was a set of bunk beds, and at the wall opposite was a rather large single cot. In the middle was a small, cracked mirror. Next to the single bed was another door, labeled "Latrine".

"Lyle gets the big bed over there," Conan chatted on, "And I sleep on the bottom bunk over there. Is the top okay with you? I don't have wings like you, and I'm not the best climber."

"It doesn't matter, but thanks. My name's Jade."

"Well, hi, Jade!" cried Conan. He turned to go sit on his bunk, and Jade noticed that he was missing his tail. She walked over and sat next to him. At that moment, the entrance door burst open, and a giant, irritable-looking Striped Skeith walked in.

"Hey, Lyle, we got a new roommate." said Conan, motioning to the Mutant Ruki.

"Evenin'" grumbled Lyle before disappearing into the bathroom.

"He's just mad because they made him scrub down the whole mess hall by himself." Conan said to Jade.

"THAT'S because…" came Lyle's voice from behind the door, "They some how blame me for EVERYTHING that goes wrong in this rat hole!"  
"Maybe you shouldn't have started that food fight today, eh?" shouted Conan, rolling his eyes to the ceiling.

"Ahh, shaddup, kid. I'm not having a good day…" Lyle's voice was an annoyed bark. Jade giggled in spite of herself. The latrine door opened and the Skeith stalked out and plopped himself onto his cot, face first. He looked up at Jade.

"Hey, welcome to the fold." he said, smiling. But with those huge teeth it looked more like a snarl. Jade understood his intentions. Ever since the lab ray incident she understood how hard it was for "unattractive" pets to convey their emotions.

"Don't worry, it's hard at first. But over time, you get used to it." he said, seeming to read Jade's mind.

"Yeah, Lyle's been here thirty years. I've been in…three, I think. Ever since I lost my tail to Balthasar." said Conan, trying to be cheerful as usual. But Jade detected more than a hint of sadness in his voice.

"An' I was abandoned when I got too old to fight in the Battledome." said the great Skeith.

"I…I don't know why I was abandoned…" said Jade. She then caught her reflection in the cracked mirror. "Does it have something to do with the…the lab ray that they shot me with? Is it because I look like this?" Both Skeith and Kacheek were silent. Jade sighed sadly. "If you two don't mind, I'm going to bed…"

"Sure, good night, Jade." Conan said as she ascended to the top bunk.

"See you in the morning, kid." grunted Lyle, already half asleep. "Don't worry, you'll get adopted sooner or later…"

**_AUTHORS NOTE: _I do not own Neopets. I never did, and I never will. Awww. Hope you enjoyed that chapter . Please comment, I know it's a bit boring, but it gets better. This IS just a prologue, after all! -Kait **


	2. The Prisoner of Fifteen Years

Fifteen years later…

**_BEEEEEP…BEEEEEP…BEEEEEP…_**

"Ugh…." Eighteen-year-old Jade pressed the "Off" button on her alarm clock. She sat up in bed and yawned.

"Good morning, Conan, Lyle…oh." Even now, she forgot. Ten years ago, Lyle had died of old age. Conan was adopted just last year. The short years that she had spent with them were the best of her life.

"But that's over now," she told herself. "Well, I probably missed breakfast anyway…" She glided down from her bunk and positioned a wooden stool next to the door. If she stood on it, she was just tall enough for her face to reach the window. Ah, yes. The humans had already started coming. A few glanced her way, but none stopped.

"Typical" she snorted as a young couple recoiled in disgust when they saw her face. It was only to be expected; this has been the norm for Jade for fifteen years. She flapped her wings, fanning herself, and then she noticed something strange.

A human, a boy no older than nineteen, was staring straight at her. He was rather tall and lanky, and his longer-than-average brown hair was tied back in a small ponytail. He wore faded jeans and a black t-shirt sporting a Beatles logo. He said something to a red Uni who was walking alongside him. She smiled, and unlocked Jade's door.

"Jade, dear, it looks like your day has finally come!" said the Uni, leading her out of the cell. Jade looked at the boy skeptically.

"Hey." he said, smiling. "I'm Silas! I've heard you've been in here for a long time; you ready to get out?"

"Whatever…" Jade kept her eyes to the ground. _Don't get attached,_ she told herself; _he'll just dump you like Mom did. Don't get attached; don't even make conversation…. _

"You alright?" Silas inquired. Jade nodded curtly. "Well, if you're sure… Hey, I need to fill out a few papers and stuff, so why don't you go wait in the lobby?"

"Sure." the Ruki mumbled. When Silas turned back to the red Uni and asked to see the clipboard she was holding, Jade dragged herself to the lobby.

In the lobby, she saw Dr. Death at his desk, going through some files. When he saw her, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"What are you doing out here?" drawled the Techo.

"What are _you_ doing out here?" Jade answered. One full year of being completely alone had _not_ done wonders for her attitude. "I'm getting adopted, why do you think?"

"Well you had better work on that tone, young lady, or we might be seeing each other sooner than you think." retorted Death, his cold eyes boring into hers. "Of course, that young man might just get tired of you, like your dear mother…" That did it. Jade leapt out of her seat and at the Techo, catching him in a headlock.

"Don't…you…_dare_…mention her," Jade hissed, "You twisted, scaly old bast—"

"_What's going on in here!_" Silas and the red Uni had just entered the lobby. Jade relinquished her hold on the doctor and retreated to a corner.

"I don't know, Eileen; I was just going through some paperwork and she just attacked me!" said the Techo in a surprisingly convincing voice. Eileen the Uni looked from Death to Jade with a dubious look on her face.

"Perhaps we can…overlook this situation. She _is_ being adopted today, after all." Eileen pawed the floor uneasily.

"So I've heard." murmured Death, leering unpleasantly at the Ruki. Jade withdrew further into her corner.

_Nice job, moron. That'll earn me another fifteen years…_ Jade was lost in thought when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Silas' face.

"I'll repeat…" he said softly, "You ready to get out?"

**Author's Note: Once again, I don't own Neopets. Sorry for the dreadfully short chapter, but I wanted to start a new chapter when she gets out of the pound. We'll get to the one-sided romance-y stuff soon, I promise! Don't give up on me yet! And comments, please! COMMENT! Good and bad, though for "bad" I prefer CONSTRUCTIVE CRTITICSM! Flamers, bring it on. I'll just laugh at you. -Kait **


End file.
